Did Dubai Police place an order for a Tesla Cybertruck?
Susprise Tweet on Tuesday evening shows the newly-launched truck in Dubai police livery
Dubai: The Dubai force here just shared an image of the newly-unveiled Tesla Cybertruck pickup with its livery.
A social media post showing the vehicle went viral in no time on Twitter, which also tagged Tesla's iconic CEO Elon Musk.
The image, originally shared by mostaqbal.ae, associated with Dubai Future Foundation, was also used by the Dubai Police on its official Twitter handle.
The tweet states: “Dubai Police launches Future Car 2020- Dubai Police CyberTruck…”
Supercars used for police patrols help boost their presence in key tourist sites — around the Burj Khalifa, Dubai International Airport, Jumeirah district and the gold and old souqs. The force also uses the world's latest technologies, including apps used for everything from paying traffic fines to reporting accidents.
The Tesla Cybertruck, which Musk dubbed as "Better truck than an F-150 (Ford), faster than a Porsche 911", is made of the same stainless steel used by Space X rockets, according to the company.
During the November 21 unveil in LA, the base RWD model was priced at $39,900 (about Dh147,000), while the dual-motor AWD option was priced $49,900. The top trim was $70,000 (about Dh257,000). All models come with self-driving hardware. The self-driving software costs an optional $7,000.
To show the EV's tougher credentials, Tesla chief designer Franz von Holzhausen hit the body with a sledgehammer, twice. No dent.
A snafu, however, emerged in the next demo. Von Holzhausen, throwing a metal ball, shattered the Cybertruck's "armored glass" windows, which marred the Saturday night event, in part causing the Tesla stock price to sink on Monday.
When Tesla opened pre-orders online, however, buyers swarmed the site, giving a refundable $100 deposit. Tesla shares recovered, after Musk tweeted that the Fremont, California-based EV maker had already received up to 200,000 "pre-orders" for the pickup.
The Cybertruck's brutal, futuristic design has polarised Tesla fans, though many raved that its price point and promised performance seem compelling.
The vehicle is set to roll out of Tesla's assembly line from late 2021.
A pre-order fee of $100 is a must to book one unit. It is fully refundable
Tesla Fans had to put down $1,000 for the Model 3 in March 2016.
For the Model Y, they currently have to pay $2,500.
Tesla stock price, given Musk's pre-orders Twitter updates on rising pre-orders, went up as much as 3.4% from Friday. The stock slid to $328 on Tuesday, trailing the broader gains in the S&P 500 tech index.
The company explains that the Cybertruck pre-order payment covers processing costs and is not considered a deposit for the vehicle.
It states: “This Pre-Order Payment and this Agreement are not made or entered into in anticipation of or pending any conditional sale contract.”
It’s unclear how many pre-orders will eventually translate to sales.
The Model 3 saw 325,000 pre-orders placed in the first week after its unveiling in 2016.
By the end of the second quarter of 2017, the number had climbed to 518,000.
Musk said at the time that 63,000 had been refunded, dropping the number to 455,000 -- which translates to 87% "conversion" rate, bookings that translated to purchase.